Sister Damien Marie Savino, FSE, to Speak on Ecology and Theology
Thursday, March 5, 2026Sister Damien Marie Savino, FSE, Ph.D., will speak on “Ecology and Theology: Listening to Reality with ‘the Ear of the Heart’” on April 22, 2026.
Sister Damien Marie Savino, FSE, Ph.D., will speak on “Ecology and Theology: Listening to Reality with ‘the Ear of the Heart’” at Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology on April 22, 2026, from 9:30 – 10:45 a.m. Central time in St. Bede Theater.
The 2015 release of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’: On Care for our Common Home, catapulted questions of ecology into global consciousness in both Catholic and ecumenical settings. How are we to bring these teachings forward in our catechesis, evangelization, and Christian discipleship? In this lecture, Sister Damien Marie, an environmental engineer with interdisciplinary doctoral training in ecology and theology, addresses that question with themes from her recently published book Learning the Language of Creation: Catholic Social Teaching and Integral Ecology. She proposes that one key response we can offer to the intertwined ecological, cultural, and ethical challenges confronting contemporary culture is to listen to reality with “the ear of the heart” and learn to live in accord with the language of creation.
Sister Damien Marie is a Franciscan Sister of the Eucharist who holds a doctorate in Civil/Environmental Engineering and master’s degrees in theology and soil science. Her interdisciplinary research interests include ecology and theology, theology and science, technology and faith, ecological restoration, and resilience theory.
Currently, she serves as the Melchor Visiting Research Professor in the College of Engineering at the University of Notre Dame, with a concurrent appointment in the McGrath Institute for Church Life. Sister Damien Marie is author of the 2025 book Learning the Language of Creation: Catholic Social Teaching and Integral Ecology, available from Liturgical Press. She was also an editor and contributor to the 2023 book Responding to the Global Pandemic as a Systemic Crisis: The Economy of Francesco as a New Paradigm. She has published and lectured widely, both nationally and internationally, on Catholicism and ecology, the integration of science and faith, resilience and ecological restoration, and questions of technology.
The lecture is free and open to the public. Parking is available at the St. Bede, Guest House, and student parking lots. Saint Meinrad operates on Central time. For more information, call Krista Hall at 812-357-6501 during business hours.